Honeymoon in a Crowded Room
by displacedtexan
Summary: Naoki and Kotoko set off on their belated honeymoon—but not alone. Part of Kotoko Volant universe, after How I Married Your Mother. FOLLOWUP STORY: Hospital Hijinks.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: Yeah, yeah, I don't own Itakiss.**

* * *

"Ooh, I'm so excited," Kotoko exclaimed, bouncing up and down with excitement in the airport lounge. "This is my first trip on an airplane!"

Dylan gave her an indulgent smile. "Then I hope the skies aren't too turbulent. I'm sorry that the Dragon Lady couldn't convince Boss to upgrade our tickets to first or business class."

Naoki snorted. "Why Mom thinks the company should pay for our honeymoon is beyond me."

"But it **_is_** a business trip," Dylan protested. "Kotoko and I are spotlight guests at the Game Developers Conference, and that's a damn big coup for Pandai."

"Then why am I coming along? I start medical school next term and I'd rather read my textbooks ahead of time."

"Don't be such a grump," Kotoko said as she tugged on her husband's arm and kissed his ear. "I know good and well that you loaded all those books onto your tablet before we left the house."

Before Naoki could respond, Dylan called "Okay, kiddos!" He rose and grabbed his carry-on, cutting off any future conversation. "That's our section being called to board. Even if we didn't get the roomy chairs, at least we managed to book bulkhead seats." He looked down at Kotoko, almost half a meter shorter than him. "Not that you need the additional legroom, but Naoki and I will appreciate it."

Naoki continued to grumble as he settled next to the window. "And why are we calling this a 'honeymoon' anyway? We've been married for over three months already."

"Come on!" Dylan pleaded as he stowed his carry-on in the upper bin. "This is the final payment to get your mother off my back!"

* * *

"What do you mean, you're married?!" Mrs. Irie's screech had Naoki glancing worriedly at the crystal knick-knacks on display in the living room while Dylan plugged both ears with his forefingers.

"We dropped by the ward office earlier today!" Kotoko, ignoring or unaware of Mrs. Irie's mood, waved her hand in front of her mother-in-law's face. "Look at this ring! And Naoki has one just like it. Dylan-san bought them for us as a wedding gift!"

"Kotoko-chan!" Mrs. Irie engulfed her in one of her smothering hugs. "How abused you have been! This paltry announcement is a travesty of what should have been! Yes, yes, your ring is very pretty," she clasped the hand that had continued to flap in front of her face, "but it's not exactly what I would have picked out for you…"

"And THAT is why we did it this way," Naoki interrupted. "Whose marriage do you think it is, anyway?"

"W-why, yours and Kotoko-chan's of course," she stammered, "but all those years planning about how it would be…" She released Kotoko and her hands swooped through the air as she visualized her dreams. "The bride, a vision in a white designer gown… The groom, in a steel gray tuxedo… The mother of the groom wearing teal and a veiled hat… I never expected you to slink around behind my back like this!" Her laser eyes zoomed in on her elder son's as she wagged a finger at his nose. "How dare you insult your bride with such a shabby, hole-in-the-wall affair? We would have reserved the grand cathedral...rented a hotel ballroom...flown you first-class anywhere you wanted to go for a honeymoon...! What in the world made you think that _**this** _ was the better option?!"

"It was his idea, actually." Naoki gestured his thumb towards Dylan, whose face visibly paled when Mrs Irie swung around to advance on him.

"You! What a Judas you turned out to be!" she stormed. "All those plans, all those samples, all our time together! Wasted!" Her arms flew in the air in frustration.

"Why did you throw Dylan-san under the bus, Naoki?" Kotoko whispered.

"Better him than me," he answered out of the corner of his mouth.

"I will not stand for this!" Mrs Irie's voice was trembling with anger. "Father! Father! You must fire this young man!" She grabbed Dylan's collar as Mr. Irie hurried to her side.

"Now, now, Mother, that's going a bit far," he said gently to her, stroking her back while easing her away. "He's too valuable an employee for Pandai to lose..."

"No! No! I will not allow this to be true!" Hysteria now tinged her voice. "You-you are not married in my eyes!" She pointed from Kotoko to Naoki.

Kotoko's eyes widened and her jaw dropped at that pronouncement. Naoki chuckled at her side. "So after all these years of touting Kotoko as my perfect wife, once it has occurred you are going to refuse me admittance to the bridal suite?"

Mrs. Irie's mouth opened and closed like a carp when her son stated it so bluntly.

Sensing that he had found her weak spot, he leaned forward with a slight smirk. "You do know how grandbabies are made, don't you?" He tugged Kotoko sharply to his side, and both her hands flew to her mouth to stifle a startled shriek. "So what'll it be, _**Mother**_?"

Her eyebrows clenched furiously until she let out a "huff!" of breath and stabbed a finger at him. "Okay, then! You're married! But don't talk about making babies in front of your brother!"

"Mom! I'm almost in 6th grade!" Yuuki protested from the couch, cradling a pillow to his chest and doing his best to stay out of the impact area.

"And you!" She rounded on Dylan again. "Since you _**did** _ manage to get them hitched I'm going to let you _**try** _ earn your forgiveness by making this up to me."

"To… _you_?" Dylan asked, confused.

"Yes! We are going to plan a magnificent reception in honor of their marriage. And a honeymoon! They must have a spectacular and romantic one!" He looked over his shoulder as if for rescue when she dragged him to the corner of the room for a quick confab, the first of many over the course of the next two months.

* * *

"I mean, she wasn't content with merely announcing the marriage at the Pandai Christmas party. No, I had to plan a full-blown wedding reception that coincided with your seijin-seiki party! I'm surprised she let me get away with combining the honeymoon with a business trip."

"Amazingly enough, I believe she finally ran out of steam. It might have been easier on you to go along with her original plans," Naoki commented before addressing the top of his wife's head. "Kotoko, if you're going to lean over my lap for the entire trip trying to look out the window, why don't we just trade seats?"

"Are you sure you don't mind?" she asked anxiously. "It's just that this…"

"I know, it's your first airplane flight. Here you go!" They rose and reseated themselves. "So much for being able to nap against the wall," he muttered.

Once they were at cruising altitude he turned on his tablet and began to read the one of the medical texts he had loaded. That is, he _tried_ to read, since apparently Kotoko and Dylan were not going to stop talking, despite being separated.

"Maybe in the next installment of the game, we can have some reason for Kotorin to wear a kimono. Because actually, darling, you looked like a little doll in the one you wore at the reception."

"Which one?" Naoki gave up and injected himself into the conversation. "Mother had her change into at least twelve outfits, five of which were kimonos. Now **_that_** garish overflowing of poor taste was extremely unlike you!"

"What?!" Kotoko asked. "All of those dresses were very stylish and fashionable!"

"Of course they were!" Dylan assured her. "After all, Mrs. Irie and I selected them ourselves."

"I thought **_I_** picked them out!" she protested.

"We just let you think so, sweetie."

"Meanie!" She stuck her tongue out at him.

"If you two children want to play together all the way across the Pacific, perhaps I should take the aisle seat," Naoki suggested.

"What a great idea!" Dylan stood and retrieved his laptop from the overhead compartment. "I'll be the one to initiate her in all the pleasures of a ten hour flight."

"Whatever you do, don't mention the Mile-High Club," he begged.

"Mile-High…?"

"Never mind, Kotoko!" Dylan diverted her. "Let's go over the trip's timetable until it's nap time!"

"Finally!" Naoki blew out a breath as he reopened his textbook. He only had time to read three paragraphs before a flight attendant broke his concentration by placing a hand on his shoulder.

"Excuse me!" She smiled widely at him. "Would any of you like something to drink?"

"Ah yes!" Dylan handed her his card. "I'll have an appletini and she'll have a mimosa. What'll you have, Naoki?"

He sighed. "Really, don't order her more alcohol than that. You **know** her endurance level. I'd like a club soda, please," he spoke to the attendant.

"Certainly!" She prepared the cocktails, shooting sideways flirtatious glances in his direction. He mentally rolled his eyes as he predicted more interruptions. After handing the alcoholic drinks to Dylan and Kotoko, she set the soda down on Naoki's tray, her hand lingering near his. "Just press the button if you need anything else," she winked suggestively.

"I doubt I will." He gave her a tight smile. "I'm on my honeymoon, after all."

"Oh!" She straightened and looked at the seat next to him. "With…?"

 _What the hell?_ Naoki leaned to the side and pressed his shoulder to Dylan's. "Yes. Wish us the best, won't you?"

"Cer-certainly!" She quickly pushed the drink cart through the curtain to make her exit. The passengers across the aisle looked his way, then whispered to each other.

Dylan turned. "What's up, Naoki?"

He chuckled. "I just scored some undisturbed reading time. Tell you the details later."


	2. Chapter 2

"What do you mean we're not flying to San Francisco for three more days?!"

"Now, Naoki-kun, this is your honeymoon. Your mother wouldn't let me get away with just the day at the conference…"

"So why am I only hearing about it now?"

Kotoko tugged his sleeve. "But Naoki, you weren't interested in the plans, remember? You just said 'Let Mom and Dylan take care of it. I'll go along to keep the peace.'"

"Right. You're not acting very peaceful now." Dylan grinned at him, knowing that he had the upper hand. "I need to spend a few days at Pandai's L.A. office, so I've set you and Kotoko up with a bus tour of the city, plus tickets to Disneyland."

"Ooh!" Kotoko clasped her hands and jumped up and down.

"Settle down. You're not in middle school," her husband chided her. "And we have a Disneyland of our own, so why…?"

"Well, we took into account your general coldness and decided a lovey-dovey-type vacation would be wasted on you. At least this way you can see some sights while keeping Kotoko amused."

"So much for studying during the day. At least there are the evenings…"

"Come on, dude! You're twenty years old, not one hundred twenty. The nights are when I'd expect even **_you_** to get romantic!"

Naoki glanced over at Kotoko, who was poring over the Japanese-language map of Disneyland that Dylan had given her. "That's none of your business."

"Righty-oh! Then here are your tickets! The tour van will pick you up at the Grand Californian tomorrow morning! Enjoy yourselves!" He waved them towards a limousine. "At least we managed to book ground transportation appropriate for a honeymoon!"

* * *

"It's cold, Naoki!" Kotoko squealed as her feet danced out of the water and back onto the sand where he was waiting not-so-patiently.

"Of course it is," he replied drily. "It's March and we're not exactly in the tropics."

"Yes, but this is supposed to be sunny California!" she pouted.

"Seasons occur all over the world," he reminded her, bending down to dust off her feet. He clicked his tongue when she ran back again to splash in the waves.

She pointed toward the distant horizon. "If my eyesight was better, I could see Japan over there."

"I hate to contradict you, but the curvature of the earth—"

"Hello, Japan!" she shouted and waved, jumping up and down.

He shook his head in acknowledgment that this was not the first time—nor would it be the last—that she would amuse him with her shenanigans.

* * *

"So movie stars put their hands and feet in wet cement," she repeated, staring at the pavement in front of Grauman's Chinese Theatre. "That seems very messy. Do you think Dylan-san will make me do that?"

Naoki chuckled. "I don't think you have anything to worry about. You're not quite at that level of celebrity, Kotoko."

She bent over and fit her hands in an imprint. "That's okay with me." Her eye spied something in her peripheral vision, and she jumped up and ran to the square. A tourist in a walker narrowly avoided getting trampled as she barreled through the crowd. "Look, Naoki! Take a picture of me with this one so we can send it to Kato-kun and the others."

He strolled up. "Hmm. Darth Vader and the droids. I think they'd appreciate it."

"And show me how to do the hand thingy like before," she instructed him.

"…The hand…? Oh!" Light dawned. "But that's—never mind." He arranged her fingers in the Vulcan salute and told her, "Smile!" He grinned as he composed a text to accompany the picture and only looked up when he heard his wife struggling to converse in English.

"I'm sorry, I don't know you. You want me to have this?" She looked in perplexity at the CD case that had been pressed into her hand. "I don't understand. Can you please say it again?"

Naoki handed the CD back to the hustler and told him firmly that they were not interested in purchasing any self-produced music. He took Kotoko by the elbow and directed her down the sidewalk, past other entrepreneurs peddling maps, selfie sticks, and various items of questionable authenticity. "I don't know what Dylan-san was thinking of to send us on this tour. If I wasn't with you, you'd disappear off the face of the planet!"

* * *

"Well, even if we didn't get close enough to climb the Hollywood sign, it was still fun!" Kotoko asserted to her husband. She had almost finished towel-drying her hair.

From his seat at the desk, he looked up from his reading. "I shudder to think of what you could have done to that historic icon," he commented wryly.

"I know!" She drew close and embraced him from behind. "I'm pretty much a walking disaster, especially when I can't understand the language as well as I'd like. I know this isn't how you planned to spend the school break, but I'm really glad you're here to watch over me."

Naoki pulled her damp towel off his shoulder and drew her closer. "Well, it _is_ supposed to be our honeymoon."

She giggled into his neck. "But you're not exactly the type to choose Disneyland, even more when it's not the one close to home."

"Actually, I prefer this one. With the ocean between us I'm a little more confident that Mom won't be shadowing us in her standard disguise of a paparazzi."

She drew back. "You don't think that Okaasan—?"

"No," he patted her arm. "My—our—little brother assures me that she is still in Tokyo, although she **_is_** haunting social media searching for our activities. Apparently you don't update often enough to suit her."

"Yikes! Falling down on my job," she joked, then sobered. "How's Irie Otosan? It seemed like he aged 10 years when you told him that you were going to medical school."

"I hear that he's cheering up some. It appears that Yuuki showed him a sketchpad of toy ideas and expressed firm intentions of taking over the helm in another decade."

"I knew the little brat had it in him!"

"Well, both of our fathers are going in for a battery of tests next week," he informed her. "They are at 'that age' and probably need to have their health assessed for the middle years."

"I don't imagine they're looking forward to that," Kotoko mused.

Naoki turned his head to look at her. "A truer statement was never made," he smirked, "which is astonishing since you don't even know what they're in for."

"Wha-a-at?" She looked at him, puzzled. Both of them jumped at the sound of a loud "Boom!"

"What's that?" Naoki wondered.

"Oh! I know!" Kotoko scrambled onto the bed to retrieve the Disneyland map from the nightstand. "It's the fireworks show! It was at a different time last night—it must have been while we were having dinner."

As the crashes continued to reverberate, Naoki commented, "I feel sorry for anyone who might have thought to have an early night."

"Yes," Kotoko nodded. "With this racket, it would be impossible to fall asleep."

"On the other hand," Naoki reached over and turned off the desk lamp, "this 'racket' means that no one can hear anything that's going on in this room, now can they?"

"What do you me—" Kotoko's question was broken off as she was tumbled over and his lips found hers. When they came up for air, she put her hands around his neck and grinned. "As you said, this is our honeymoon!"


	3. Chapter 3

"So did you enjoy Disneyland?" Dylan asked after greeting them at the airport. Kotoko chattered almost unintelligibly in excitement about the various attractions they had experienced. Dylan raised an eyebrow at Naoki.

He shrugged his shoulders. "I managed to keep her from falling out of all the boats we were on. I didn't realize there were that many water rides at the park."

The other man chuckled as he reached for his rolling case. "Yes, she does seem like the type to get overexcited and overturn one, doesn't she? Did you stay late for the fireworks?"

When his question went unanswered he turned to look at the pair trailing him. They were looking at each other as if for a loss for words. Finally Naoki managed a smile and said, "Yes, we enjoyed the fireworks tremendously."

"Hmph! I think there's more to the tale than that, but I'll let it pass." He proceeded briskly through the terminal. "This flight won't take long so we'll have plenty of time to relax before pre-registering this evening."

"Is this smaller conference just to satisfy my mother's need for a honeymoon, Dylan-san?" Naoki asked. "I would have thought that a large one such as Comic Con would make more sense and give you more 'bang' for the advertising buck."

"Oh, we're certainly returning for that," he replied, "but this conference is aimed at game innovators and developers, looking at the future of the industry and the challenges ahead. Kotoko and I will be on stage during a discussion of borderless gaming and cultural exchange. Not exactly the same as being swamped with 30,000 enthusiastic fans fighting for an action figure." He raised a finger to forestall Kotoko's question, which he could see balancing on the edge of her tongue. "We **_do_** have a booth, with the games and some of your figures, but the primary reason for our attendance is to introduce the English versions of Racquet Warrior and its first sequel."

"En-english?" Kotoko asked. "You know my accent's not that good…"

Dylan patted her on her shoulder. "Don't worry, darling, we hired an American actress for that. She'll be on stage with us, as well, but I believe _you_ will be the real star."

"Me?" She pointed to herself.

"You wouldn't believe the buzz on the message boards once your appearance was announced. I credit Kotorin for the bump in registration numbers this year."

"Don't say that unless it's true," Naoki warned him. "Her gullibility level is infamously high."

"No! I'm serious!" he protested. "Gamers have been playing the Japanese versions here for the past year, using translator cheats to manage the menus. It's taken me this long to convince the boss that we needed to think outside of Japan for our distribution of Kotorin. Tennis _**is**_ an international sport, after all." He handed the gate attendant his pass, and they followed him down the tunnel and seated themselves in the plane.

Kotoko decided to clarify a point in the earlier conversation. "So you're reissuing the original in English…"

"…as well as all future versions. Yes, Kotoko," he smiled at her, "we already have the third installment storyboarded. Aoki has been brought on board the design team, and Tanaka will be assisting them during school breaks until his graduation, even though I have plans to steal him for the marketing department after that. I actually managed to squeeze him into this trip's budget, so he'll be meeting us at the conference. I would have liked to bring Yuuki-kun as well, since he is the 'heir apparent', but if I had..." He trailed off.

"Considering that Mother has been laying heavy hints that _she_ needs a vacation, no power on earth could have kept her from following," Naoki stated grimly.

"Right." Dylan raised an eyebrow in agreement. "He'll be traveling with us when we return to California for Comic Con in a few months. He has experience at guarding Kotoko from her fans, and **_that_** will come in handy there."

"Since I'm pretty sure that I will be ass-deep in medical courses by then, you have others that you could draft to help in that regard. There's her entire male harem—" He snickered as Kotoko shot him a glare. "Excuse me, the Anime Appreciation Club."

Kotoko elbowed him for that comment. "So, Dylan-san, I won't have to do a lot of meet-and-greets or autograph sessions here, since it's more technical geeky business-related?"

"Au contraire, ma vie!" He clasped her hand with both of his. "No one makes more excitable fanboys than the ones who design the games. We might need to call upon your handsome husband here as a bodyguard."

"I think that Naoki would prefer to stay behind and study," Kotoko admitted. "He didn't have much time for that earlier in the trip."

"What a shame!" Dylan leaned back into the seat, still maintaining possession of Kotoko's hand in one of his. "I suppose that I'll have to take on that role then."

Kotoko laughed. "You've done a great job of it so far. It was my good luck that I got assigned to you to take care of me."

"Luck?" Dylan's face sobered. "My dear, don't you know that I campaigned quite heavily for the Racquet Warrior account?"

"Really?" Kotoko's eyes widened to their full extent. "But, why?" Naoki, on her other side, leaned forward to pay attention as well.

"I'm a super fanboy myself! I fell in love with the game and your character!" He inclined his head near hers. "And when I met the real-life Kotorin, I must admit that this jaded heart did flip over."

Her look of astonishment broke and she began to laugh. "Dylan-san, be serious!"

He placed a hand on her cheek and turned her to face him, nose-to-nose, and quirked an eyebrow at her. "Admit it, Kotoko, if I was straight, I'd beat out Naoki over there, wouldn't I?"

Kotoko eyes crossed while staring at him at such close range. Naoki noticed that while the wheels of her brain were whirring over the question, her tongue was tied. He stood and pulled her to her feet as well. "Come on, we're trading places!"

Dylan leaned back and laughed. "Haven't we done this before already?"

Naoki glared. " ** _I'll_ ** take care of my wife this weekend. **_You_** can attend to your other duties."

"But she _is_ my duty. And such a pleasant one too," he called over to Kotoko.

"Dylan-san, you _were_ teasing, weren't you?" she asked anxiously.

"Of course, darling." His smile sparkled. "But you're the only woman who would have even a chance of tempting me to play for the other team!"

"Enough flirting, playboy! I never said that _**you**_ could join her harem!"


	4. Chapter 4

"It's gotten so bad that Dad actually hid her credit cards so she can't run away on her own," Naoki murmured to Dylan as they followed Kotoko and their guide through the convention center maze.

"Yikes! She'd be hopping a plane over here in no time!" he responded.

"She called Kotoko twice yesterday and once this morning, just after midnight our time, complaining about how much she misses her. As if we aren't going to be home in a few days!"

"You're lucky her computer skills aren't advanced enough to hack a spy satellite to track you!"

"Tanaka-kun!" Kotoko stepped through the door opened by the guide and flew across the room to hug her friend.

"Hey, Kotori-nee!" He kissed her on the cheek quickly then released her as Naoki and Dylan approached in her wake, chuckling together. "How's the honeymoon?"

"Great!" She grinned then looked around at the plain walls. "Dylan-san, I think you're color-blind. This should be called the 'faded beige' room!"

"'Green room' is just another way to say waiting area," Naoki informed her as he seated himself in one of the padded chairs and took out his tablet. "It no longer has anything to do with the actual color."

"Oh."

"Especially when it's in a multi-purpose room at a conference only in town for a few days," Dylan added, patting her cheek as he passed by to sample a tomato from the fresh vegetable tray on the buffet table. Tanaka followed, asking a question about Racquet Warrior's release schedule.

Kotoko opened a small cooler and pulled out a bottle of water. "Does anyone want something to drink?"

Tanaka turned from his conversation with Dylan. "I'll take one! Thanks!"

The door opened again just as Kotoko was handing her friend the drink. A curvaceous young woman with dramatic eye make-up strode in, followed by a harried man with a badge and clutching a clipboard.

"M-M-Miss Lee! If you will p-p-please wait in here for a few moments until we are ready for you! These are," he consulted his notes, "Dylan Saeki, Hikaru Tanaka and Naoki Irie of Pandai, and Kotoko Irie, the original Kotorin, Racquet Warrior. Miss Jasmine Lee, the English voice of Kotorin."

"It is very nice to meet you," Kotoko said carefully in English, bowing politely. The men bowed also, Naoki having risen upon the actress's entrance.

"Sure," she replied in a bored tone.

"You will join the French panel members currently on stage in...uh...ten minutes time," the conference flunky announced.

"What!?" Miss Lee screeched. "My agent didn't say anything about having to share the spotlight. She claimed this was an easy show-up-and-get-paid-for-smiling gig! I'm calling her right now!"

"Why don't you go ahead and do that, darling?" Dylan put on his best business smile and approached her with the smooth gait of a predator. "We're all on the same team here—and that would be Team Kotorin." He indicated a wide-eyed Kotoko with an inclination of his head. "And when you get your agent on the line, hand me the phone and I'll tell her exactly **_how_** you have made yourself unemployable to Pandai."

She froze for a few seconds then replaced the cell phone in her minuscule bag. "What a silly misunderstanding this is!" She laughed easily and hooked her arm with his. "Now, never mind that! Which one were you again?"

"She's a fiery one," Tanaka muttered to Kotoko. She nodded mutely in response.

Naoki walked over and leaned to whisper in her ear. "Maybe I'm guarding you from the wrong gender this weekend."

His wife's frown deepened when Dylan waved Tanaka over. "And this young man is one of the game's creators. He has a bright future ahead of him, hopefully at Pandai!" Tanaka smiled at the now composed young woman and began to chat with her.

"I can't believe I expended all that effort on him just so he could be able to have a conversation with **_THAT WITCH_**!" Kotoko muttered. Naoki patted her on the shoulder in an attempt to comfort her, biting his tongue as he did so.

When Dylan drifted her way, Kotoko snagged him. "Dylan-san!" she hissed. "She is _not_ a nice person!"

"Well, dear, she's an actress, and not a very successful one at that," he admitted.

"With that attitude, she probably won't get much farther," Naoki surmised.

"Look at you, Mr. Hollywood predictor," Dylan teased.

"Not successful?" Kotoko pouted. "I was hoping for someone like Scarlett Johansen or Angelina Jolie. I bet **_they'd_** be nicer."

"I'm sure they would, darling, especially if we could pay their asking price. Unfortunately, they're _wa-a-ay_ out of our budget," he chuckled.

"Anyway, she's so rude that she gives Japanese people a bad reputation." She scowled at him.

"She's not Japanese," Dylan offhandedly informed her before swigging from a water bottle. "She's 100% American, but part…Korean? Indonesian? The story changes, depending upon what role she's up for."

"What!? But Racquet Warrior Kotorin is Japanese! Why couldn't they get a Japanese actress?" she protested.

Dylan shrugged. "The choice was out of my hands this time. The California office made the decision and they are highly influenced by Hollywood's insistence on ethnic casting. The industry **_tries_** , but they don't particularly distinguish between any of the Asian countries."

Kotoko shook her head. "Not only is that rude, but it makes no sense."

"You're not in Kansas anymore, Kotoko," he chuckled as he patted her on the head.

"What? A painting?"

"Kansas, not canvas," Naoki corrected her as Dylan left to confer with Clipboard Man. "You know: Oz, tornadoes…"

"Ah! Tutu!"

"Close," he sighed. " _ **So**_ close."

"Two minutes, folks!" Dylan called out.

"Well, I suppose I should get ready," Miss Lee announced to the group. Smiling sultrily at Tanaka, she handed him her bag as she asked, "Do you mind?" At that point she eased out of her fashionable trench coat, which Kotoko had assumed was a shirt dress.

"Wha-a-at!?" Kotoko gasped to her husband, who was choking back a laugh. "She can't mean to wear **_that_** in the auditorium!"

"I wonder what _rating_ of movies she has been featured in," Naoki whispered. The actress was sporting an outfit almost identical to the one in the animated video that the Anime Appreciation Club had produced during Kotoko's freshman year in college.

"She is shameless!" Kotoko averred. "I refused to wear that outfit! You remember it!"

Tanaka's eyes were about to bug out, and he swallowed loudly. "Oh, if only Kato could be here."


	5. Chapter 5

Naoki's flat refusal to represent Pandai as a member of the panel earned him a folding chair offstage, with a fairly unobstructed view of the long table in the spotlight. Although Tanaka had no trouble with questions in English, Dylan took it upon himself to make sure that Kotoko understood before answering. The delay caused by his quick whispers created some entertaining openings. The last one was a doozy.

"Kotoko, at what point in development of the game did you become involved?"

By the time Kotoko nodded her comprehension to Dylan, Miss Lee had leaned forward to better display her endowments and was speaking. "I was selected to be the face—and voice—of Kotorin for the English-speaking world late last year. This was probably due to my extensive resumé in the film industry. I appeared in such shows as…"

Familiarity with Kotoko's body language caused Naoki to snort out loud. Her rigid posture, the way she gripped the edge of the table, and the quick turn of her head to glare at the other woman let him know that, barring divine intervention, a fireworks display was about to ensue which would dim the one they missed at Disneyland.

The auditorium's inhabitants were cheated of that sight as Dylan broke in, "Yes, we are aware of your filmography, as you have listed it three times already. But I believe the question was addressed to the young lady at **this** end of the table." Sparks flew between their eyes before she reluctantly subsided into her chair.

* * *

Even though Dylan's prediction that Kotoko would prove more popular than the voice actress came true, it didn't prevent Kotoko from fuming at the end of the day. "I still think Scarlett Johansen would have been a better choice!"

"At least _you_ don't have a new nickname," Naoki groused back at her. " _Mr. Kotorin_ , indeed!"

* * *

The voice actress had quickly recovered from her temporary setback and again made an attempt to hog the spotlight during the autograph session at the now woefully overmanned—and overcrowded—Pandai booth. Although Dylan had forcibly "convinced" her to put the coat back on (yet somehow she neglected to fasten any buttons above the belt), she was left to figuratively twiddle her thumbs for the next several hours. The single-file autograph line snaked through the aisles between vendor exhibits, with Kotoko the first stop. Unconscious of the time she was taking, she chatted, shook hands, and took a photograph with any who asked. As Miss Lee was a quick scrawler and showed little inclination to speak with anyone who appeared unable to advance her career, her only potential conversational partners were Naoki and Tanaka. The result of her brief exchange with Naoki made him the recipient of a dramatic cold shoulder, which he appeared not to notice at all. Thus she was left with Tanaka, who frequently talked memory requirements and slow frame rates with fans she had chosen to pass on quickly.

A gamer reaching the front of the line, handing over a poster to be autographed, asked Kotoko who was the person next to her. Upon being told, "My husband," a rumble of murmurs traveled backwards in waves through the crowd, even those not waiting for an autograph. "She's married?" "Kotorin has a husband?!" "What a disappointment!"

Miss Lee shot Kotoko a nasty look then rose to her feet and waved with a smile. "Don't worry, guys! I'm still single!" She was taken aback when the majority of fans ignored her ploy. One brave soul who had missed the panel asked loudly, "Who's _**that**_?!"

The heavy hand of Dylan pushed her back into her chair. He leaned over and whispered, "I'm single too, but no one asked **_us_** , now, **_did they_**?" Unphased by the nasty glare she sent his way, he added, "Remember what I told you earlier, this appearance is about Racquet Warrior Kotorin, not your personal aggrandizement."

"But I **_am_** Kotorin!" she protested.

Dylan shook his head and gave her a pitying look. "No, darling, you're just a pale reflection in a slightly warped mirror. Don't forget that."

She sniffed and deliberately turned her head away from him.

* * *

Naoki continued. "At any rate, that madhouse was enough to convince me to let you do future public appearances on your own. I don't know how you can stand all that noise!"

"Huh? That was no louder than just about any day in Class F at Tonan High! By the way, I noticed you watching _That Woman_ pretty often this afternoon. What were you so focused on, anyway? It couldn't have been her costume, now could it?"

"Not at all," he denied. "Even though I doubt my wedding ring would have stopped that She-Devil, she lost interest when I admitted that I had nothing to do with the company." He chuckled. "What I was admiring were Tanaka-san's slick skills. I think he convinced her to have dinner with him."

"Surely he has better taste than that!"

"Do you care to place a wager?"

* * *

Kotoko leaned forward and called across the airplane aisle. "Tanaka-kun, are you feeling well? Did you not get enough sleep last night?"

Dylan gave a slightly evil laugh. "You'd know the answer to that if you'd seen who made the 'Walk of Shame' out of his room this morning."

Naoki held out a hand. "Pay up, Kotoko."

She scowled at him before turning a baleful gaze to her friend. " _Really_ , Tanaka-kun?"

He gave her a sheepish grin and shrugged. "What can I say?"

"You're way too nice for her," she warned him.

Tanaka shook his head with a twinkle in his eye. "Not really." He turned to Dylan. "You're going back in July, right?"

"Yes. We've reserved a booth at Comic Con. Why?" he inquired. "Do you want to join us and have a second go-round with her?"

"No." Tanaka's grin exhibited a touch of spite. "She was very clear about aiming after the highest salary possible. She is _extremely_ eager to meet the future head of Pandai."

Kotoko gasped. "You didn't!"

"Unfortunately, I failed to mention that he was not yet in middle school… So, please," he clasped his hands together. "Send me a photo of her expression when she comes face-to-face with Yuuki!"


End file.
